Controlling means



Nov. Z0 1923.

1,414,446 (Il` S, SCHROEDER CONTROLLING MEANS Filed May 27, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet l SSE (gw/venan:

Nov. zo, 1923. v1,434,446

'l C. S. SCHROEDER CONTR OLLING' MEANS Patented Nov. 2 0, 1923.

UNITED STATES l1,474,446 PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES S. SCHROEDER, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR 10 THE YALE da TOWNE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT.

CONTROLLING MEANS.

Application filed May 27, 1921. Serial No. 473,082.

T o all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES S. SGHROEDER, a citizen of .the United States, and a resident of Stamford, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inv Controlling Means; and I do'hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art toA which it appertai'ns to make and use the same.

'lhis invention relates to improvements in controlling means and more particularly to means for controlling the operation of electrically actuated apparatus,-one object oi the invention being to provide simple and eiiicient mechanical means cooperable with an electric controller for operating a brake Jor the electric motor included in the circuit oi' said controller.

A 'further object is .to so construct an electric controller that it shall be operable automatically by limitstop means to open the circuit ci an electric motor.

A further object is to construct an electric controller in such manner that it shall be controllable automatically by the apparatus with which an electric motor included in circuit with said cont-roller is adapted to actuate, to reset the contact devices to neutral positions to openl the motor circuit when a moving part off the apparatus operated by said motor reaches a limit of travel.

With these and other objects in view, the

invention consists in certain novel features o construction .and combinations and arrangement of parts as hereinafter set forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure l is a view illustrating an embodiment of my invention; Figure 2 is a. plan view of the controller, with the cover of the casing removed; Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view on vthe line 3--3 of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a view on the line 4-4 of Figure 2, and Fi res 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are detail views. n electric motor is indicated at 1 and on the shaft 2 of this motor, a brake wheel 3 is secured. A brake band 4 is cooperable with the brake Wheel and is connected with an operating rod 6 mounted in the casing 'of an electric controller 5 and cooperaole mechanically with movable arts of the 4latter, as 'hereinafter specifically explained, to control the application of the brake.

The electric controller shown in the drawing is of the drum type comp-rising a metal drum 7 having a covering 8 of bakelite or other suitable insulating material on which the Contact plates 9 are secured, and a series of sprin contact fingers 10 to cooperate with sai contacts; the fingers 10 being carried .by suitable holders 11 secured to a block 12 of wood or other insulating material fastened in the casing 13 in which the controller mechanism is mounted and enclosed; The contacts and contact fingers are ineluded in the. circuit of the motor and suitable resistance elements in a manner well known in the art,-the circuits and arrange-y ments of contact devices'being'such that when the drum is turned 1n one direction the motor will-be operated in one directionv at one ot two or more speeds and that when the'controller drum is turned in the opposite direction from its neutral position, the direction oi the rotation of the motor will be reversed and caused to rotate at one of two or more speeds, at the will oi the operator.

The drum 7 of the controller is mounted loosely on-a shaft 14 which extends through the same and is movable longitudinally with relation thereto. near one end in one wall ot the casing 13 'and projects beyond said wall for the reception oit an operating handle 15. The other end of said shaft passes through and beyond the oppostie wall ot the casing and the portion thereorP which normally projects beyond the casing is contracted somewhat in diameter, thus forming a shoulder 16 against which a ring 17 bears, said ring also bearing-against the casing. A sleeve 18 is fixed to the end of this projecting portion of the shaft and forms a shoulder 19 against which a ring 20 bears, and a spring 21 encircling the contracted portion of the shaft bears at its respective ends against the rings 17 and The shaft 14 is mounted 20. A- housing 22 secured to the casing encloses the spring 21' and the projecting rtion of the shaft 14 which it encircles. he f ree end ofthe shaft 124 and the sleeve 18 thereon projects lthrough the free end-of the housing-,22 and the latter is formed at; its free end with an annular shoulder 23 onn an abutment for the ring 20 against which the outer end of the spring 21 bears. By these means, its normal position ,relatively to the drum and the easing but, is capable of longitudithe shaft 14 is retained in nal movement against 4the resistance of the slot construction; viz: a pin 25 carried by the shaft 14 having a part 26 normally disposed in the intermediate portion27 of a slot in the Wall of the controller drum 7 and said slot having enlarged portions 28, 28 extending'in opposite directions laterally from respective ends of the narrower intermediate slot portion 27. It Will be apparent that by connecting the controller shaft with the drum as above described, motion imparted by operation of the controller handle will normally be transmitted by the shaft to the drum to turn the latter in one direction'or the otherto shift the electrical connections. Turning movement of the controller drum may be limited to prevent the contact plates thereon from being moved past the contacts on the spring lingers, by engagement of the-hand operating lever with stops 15a on the casing. When a moving part of the apparatus driven by the motor reaches the limit of its travel, the controller shaft will be moved longitudinally 'by operatlon of the limit stop devices and the part 26 'of thepn -25 will be moved from lthe 'contracted intermedia-te portion 27 of the slot in the drum into one or the other enlarged portions 28 of the slot (according to the direction in which the shaft 14 has been moved longitudinally by the operation of the limit stop devices) and thedrum will be free to return to its origin-al or neutral position after having been previously operated to effect the closing of the co-ntroller contact devices. Under such conditions, the

drum will be returned to neutral position to e'ect the automatic opening of the vmotor circuit, by means of devices hereinafter' described.

The rod 6 (which is connected with the brake as previously stated) is mounted Within the controller casing and disposed at right angles to the controller shaft 14,-said rod having at one end a yoke or slotted member 29 through which the controller shaft passes. This yoke or slotted member is provided with diametrically opposite shoulders or lugs 80, 30 (one over' and the other under the controller shaft), and cooperable with these lugs, are lugs 31', 31 carried by the controller drum. A spring 32 on the rod 6 bears at one end against the casing and at the other end a ainst a shoulder 33 on said rod near the yo e 29. This spring serves normally to retain the lugs "30 in contact with the lugs 31 and thus the drum is held normally in neutral ition with the motor circuit open. It w` l also be understood that when the hand operatin -lever 15 is releasedby the operator (a r the drum has been shifted), the spring 32 will cause cooperation of lugs 30, 31 to return the drum andV hand lever to neutral position. The same spring 32 will operate to effect the application of the band brake when the controller drum is in neutral position with the motor Acircuit open. Thus it will be seen that when the controller is operated to move the drum from on to neutral position, the brake will be applied by the lon itudinal movement of the rod 6 effected y the action of the spring 32 and thus the rotation of the motor will be stopped promptly. lt will be apparent that when the drum is turned in either direction from neutral to on position, the rod 6 will be moved longitudinally to release the brake.

Should the controller shaft be moved longitudinally by the operation of the limit stop devices when the drum is` in on i sition with the motor in operation, an the part 26 of the pin 25 is thus moved from the contracted intermediate portion of the slot in the drum to one or the other enlarged portions of said slot, the spring 32 will act promptly, through the rod 6 and one or the other lug 30 cooperating with one or the other lug 31, to effect return of the drum y to neutral positiomithus opening the motor circuit and at the same time cause application of the brake to effect the prompt stopping of the motor and preventing the driven apparatus from overrunning the limit of its normal travel should the manual operation of the controller at the proper time be neglected.

ln operation of the mechanism with the use of the hand lever, the drum may be moved from neutral to. on position against the resizance of the spring 32 and the brake will be released by movement of the rod 6 the latter being operated for this purpose l) the drum during the turnin thereof. en the hand lever is release the spring 32 will operate to cause return of the drum to neutral and the brake to be applied by movement of the rod 6, by said spring. lf, during the operation of devices controlled by the motor, the limit stop devices should cause longitudinal movement of the controller shaft (when the drum is at on position), the drum would be released and the s ring 32 and parts actuated thereby woul opera-te to return the .drum to neutral and yapply the brake, as previously ex lained.

arious changes might b e made in the details of construction of my invention Without departing from the spirit thereof or limiting its scope and hence I do not wish to restrict myself to the precise details herein set forth. i

Having fully describezl my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent. is

l. The combination of an electric motor, a brake therefor, an electric controller, me-

chanical means operable by a movable member of the controller for releasing the brake Cil when the movable member of the controller 1s moved from neutral posltion, means for manually operating the movable member of the controller, means for releasing said movable member from its operatin means, and means for returning said-movab e member to neutral position when thus released.

2. The combination of an electric motor, a brake therefor, an electric controller, mechanical means operable by a movable member ol the controller for releasing the brake when the movable member of the controller is moved from neutral position,l means for manually operating the movable member of the controller, means for releasing said movable member from its o erating means, and means for returning sai movable member to neutral position vwhen thus released, said last-mentioned means including a spring o erable to apply the brake when the movab e member of the controller is returned to neutral osition.

3. he combination with an electric motor, a brake therefor, and an electric controller of the drum type, of a rod connected with said brake and provided with two lu disposed opposite to each other, arts on t o controller drum to cooperate wit 1 one or the other of the lugs when the drum is turned from neutral position, to move said rod to release the brake, and a springl for moving said rod in a direction to app y the brake when the drum is in or returns to neutral position. l

4. The combination with the movable member of an electriccontroller, of a oontroller shaft, means detachably connecting the said shaft with the movable member of the controller, means for turning said' shaft and movable memberfrom neutral position, means operable by limit stop devlces for releasin the said movable member from the contro er shaft, and means for automatically returning the said movable member to neutral osition.

5. The combinatlon of the drum of an electric controller, a longitudinally movable tric controller, said drum provided with a slothaving a contracted intermediate portion and enlarged end portions, a lon tudinally movable shaft passing throu said drum, a in carried bysaid shaft an entering the s ot in the drum, a spring retaining the shaft normally in position with the in entering the contracted portion ofthe s ot, means or turning said shaft and drum in either direction from neutral position, and means for neturnin the drum to neutral position when the sha is moved longitudinally and the pin carried thereby becomes disposed in either of the enlarged end portions of the slot in said drum.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES S. SCHROEDER. Witnesses:

A. Blunt,- B. Wou-son. 

